stevens



2 Sheets- 5mm 1. S.

J. G. STEVEN 00m OPERATED VENDIN G MACHINE.

Pat

enize Aug. 26 18900 WITNESSES:

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. 0. STEVENS. COIN DPERATED VENDING MACHINE. No. 435,370 I PatentedAug. 26, 1890. 2%. 4. a

WITNESSES: ENETUHM a4 J 1 v A fliam g j UNITED STATES PATENT Orrrcn.

JOHN G. STEVENS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO EBEN N. HIGLEY, SAMEPLACE.

COIN-OPERATED VENDING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 435,370, dated August26, 1890.

Application filed May 21, 1890. Serial No. 352.625- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN C. STEVENS, of New York, county of New York,and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Coin-Operated Vendlug-Machines, of which the following is a full,clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, and to the letters of referenceanarked thereon.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved coin-operatedvending-machine pttrticularly adapted to the vending of cigare es.

The invention embraces a detachable coinchute, an improvedgoods-delivery chute, a locking device connecting the pull-bar with thegoods-ejecting mechanism, a spring-actuated coin-receiver, a'device forpreventing the fraudulent operation of the machine, and other noveldevices, all in combination, all of which will be hereinafter fully setforth.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of thespecification, in which similar letters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure ,1 is a rear elevation of the machine with the back of the caseremoved. Fig. 2 is a partly sectional side elevation of the same with aside of the case removed. Fig. 3 is a sectional side elevation of thelower portion of the goods-delivery chutes on line a: 00, Fig. 1. Fig. 4is a plan view on line y y, Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is asectional elevation ofthe lower part of the device, showing the rear of the frontdelivery-chute and attachments with auxiliary chute removed. Fig. 6 isan enlarged partly sectional plan showing the pull-bar andfraud-preventing device in position. Fig. 7 is an enlarged sideelevation of the same. Fig. 8 is a plan ofthe coin-receiver. r

In the drawings, A represents the ease of the vending-machine havingfixed on its floor near the rear edge thereof the blocks a, over whichare engaged the forks h of the door B when the latter is closed inposition, and 1) represents the door-lock. The front of the case A isprovided with an opening behind or in which is set a pane of glass 0,through which the goods to be vended may be seen.

The coin-entrance slot-plate c has a slot 0 (shown in dotted lines, Fig.1,) that opens into the coin-chute O, which is removable, and is held inposition by the engagement of its lateral dovetailed projection c in acome spondin g block 0 secured on the inside of the case A. .This chuteO is so arranged that it may readily be taken out to be freed frompaper, sticks, or other interfering articles that may be maliciouslyintroduced into it through the coin-entrance slot.

In the bottom of the case-front is an opening d, extending the wholewidth of the case, through which the vended goods are delivered.

0n the opposite sides of the case above the blocks a are securedangle-strips f, that support the bed-plate D, to the front part of whichis hinged by hinges f the main delivery-chute E, that is designed toreceive and deliver the goods to be vended, said chute E being composedof two upright rectangular channel-beams, with their open edges facingeach other, held together. at suitable distance apart with cross-bars ff and the fronts of these channels are cut away at the bottom, asindicated at f", Fig. 3, to permit of the discharge therefrom of thecigarettes (indicated at g) upon the front portion of the bed-plate D,whence they may be discharged into the apron E, which extends from thefront ends of the angle-strips f out through the opening d in the frontof the case A. The face of the plate D has near its front edge atransverse groove (shown at f, Fig. 3) to hold the cigarettes as theysuccessively fall from the chute E. This chute E is hinged, as shown, sothat it may be inclined rearward by the operator, as indicated in dottedlines, Fig. 2, when he removes the case-door to refill said chute withthe articles to be vended,and when said chute 0 is restored to itsnormal upright position (shown in full lines, Fig. 1) it is held inplace by a spring-plate g, (best shown in Fig. 4,) that is secured tothe inside of the case. In the lower edge of the cross-bar f twoopenings f are made for the admission of the fingers f of theejecting-plate R, whose functions will be hereinafter set forth.

Only the main chute E may be introduced into the machine for the purposeof receiving and delivering the goods to be vended; but I prefer to makeopenings h in the rear faces of the uprights of the chute E, as bestshown in Fig. 3, and secure by plate h to the rear of the chute E alikechute E, that at its lower end shall coincide with the openings h of thesaid chute E, as best shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4. The deliveryopenings in the auxiliary chute E are kept closed, when desired, by aplate k that is retained in normal position by the engagement of itsupwardly-projecting end lugs h about the outer edges of the chute E Whenthe chute E is filled with its charge of cigarettes,a weight or followerF is placed on top of them for the purpose of assuring their movementforward when desired. As the cigarettes contained in the said chute areone by one ejected therefrom, the follower F, which has attached to it abar 1' with ends projecting beyond the outer edges of the two chutesmoves downward until the ends of said bar come in contact with the endlugs 72, of the gate h with the effect of pushing said gate down belowthe openings It, so that the cigarettes in the chute E can fall throughsaid openings h into chute E and thence into the groove of the bed-plateD to be packed into the apron E, as best indicated in Fig. 3. In likemanner one or two more auxiliary delivery-chutes could be added to thoseherein shown.

On a plate G, secured on the inside of the case A just beneath thecoin-chute C, is pivotedby pivot h the coin-receiver H, (the anglestripf on that-side being partially cut away for that purpose,) which is heldup in normal position, as best shown in Fig. 7, by a spring is, securedbeneath it on the plate G. This coin-receiver H consists of a segmentalplate held with its straight edge uppermost fiat against the plate G andprojecting inward laterally from the said straight edge to a block Z, towhich is firmly secured a narrow metal strip Z, as best shown in Fig. 8,parallel with the said upper edge of the coin-receiver plate and farenough from it to admit of the passage of a suitable coin between them.This coin-receiver plate has also a notch k in its upper edge and alaterally-projecting stud 10 about midway of its body, the functions ofboth of which will hereinafter be fully explained.

The pull-bar O, that projects through the front of the case, extendsrearward inside of the case and is held to the plate Gby a screw m,which passes through a slot in in said bar, and the inner end of saidbar is bent at right angles and has pivoted to it by a pivot m alocking-latch O, capable of movement in a vertical plane and having aclosed slot (not shown) in its extreme end. Projecting from the innerface of this bar 0 are an oval-shaped dog m set diagonally, and a stud mwhose functions will be hereinafter set forth, and a shoulder on is madein the lower edge of said pull-bar to engage under certain conditionswith the nose of the coin-receiver.

Pivoted to an oifset p on the inside of the case-front and so as to movein a vertical plane is a double rack-bar S, with a rounded end and withteeth wider than the shank of the bar, which is held up in operativeposition by a spring p, that is secured by screw 13 on the plate G.

The ejectingplate R consists of an H- shaped piece of metal having slotsq, and it is held flat on the bed-plate D by screws q, that pass throughsaid slots into said bedplate. Thefront extensions or fingers g of thisplate R are enlarged, so that they may nearly fill the bottom openings f6 in the chute E, and to the cross-bar of the said plate is fixed anangle-piece (1 over the vertical extremity of which the slotted end ofthe'loeking-latch O is designed to engage, and a retracting-spring ghaving one end secured to the bed-plate D and the other end to thecross-bar of the plate R, holds the latter normally in position,-

(shown in Figs. 2 and 4;) and at the same time operates through thelatch-connection O to draw and hold the pull-bar O inward to its normallocking position, when it is released by the operator.

The side of the bed-plate D nearest the coin-receiver II is cut away, asindicated in Fig. 4, so that the introduced coin may fall from saidreceiver into the chamber beneath the said bed-plate, and anangle-shield g is fixed vertically on the edge of said out to inclosesaid receiver. This bed-plate with its attachments can be readilywithdrawn from the case A on disengaging the latch 0' from theangle-piece q, and ,be as easily returned to position.

The parts being in position, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, with thenose of the coinreceiver locking the pull-bar in inoperative position,the operator will drop a suitable coin, as 0, through the slot 0 intothe coinchute, whence it will fall into the position shown in Fig. 7,with its lowered edge setting on the stud 7c of the coin-receiver andits upper edge against the stud m of the pullbar, and be held there.Then the operator, taking hold of the projecting handle of the pull-bar,draws the latter out with the eifect of causing the stud m to travelover the upper edge of the coin and to make said coin push thecoin-receiver downward, as indicated in dotted lines, Fig. 7, until thecoin can pass between the two studs 70 m and fall into the chamberbelow, when the spring 70' immediately operates to force the saidcoinreceiver back with its nose in contact with the lower edge of thepull-bar 0. As the coin-receiver is pushed downward by the coin, itsnose is disengaged from the shoulder m of the pull-bar, therebyunlocking the latter, so that as said pull-bar is further drawn out theejecting-plate R is synchronously moved forward (because of theconnecting lockinglatch 0) until its fingers (1 push the lowestcigarette of the chute E into the apron E, whence it may be removed bythe operator. As the pull-bar is drawn out, its stud m comes in contactwith the rounded or upward-sloping end of the rack-barSand moves overthe upper and forward projectin'gjeeth,

of the same, which prevent the pushing in again of said pull-bar whileit is unlocked until it has passed over the last one thereof and to itsextreme outward pull, and then the spring 19 operates to raise the saidrackbar sumciently--for the stud m on the release by the operator of thepull-bar to engage against the end curve 20 (shown in dotted linesfFig.7) of the rack and run freely over and ofi the lower rack-teeth whichpoint rearward, and then the pull-bar being by the operation of thespring q returned to its normal position the spring is operates to forcethe coin-receiver upward, so that its nose shall engage in the shouldermof the pull-bar and lock the latter in place. Could the operator, afterthe unlocking of the pull-bar by means of an introduced coin, freelymove the said bar out and in to the extent of the distance 7 between theshoulder m and the rear end of the said bar he could, move andreciprocate the ejecting-plate suiliciently to'ejeet a cigarette at eachpull until the chute E would be emptied of its contents. I-Ience'therack-teeth pointing in opposite directions and the stud m are providedto make such movement and consequent perpetration of fraudulent practiceupon the machine impossible.

Having thus described my invention, I

Patent- 1 I A coin operated vendingmachine constructed substantially asherein shown and described, containing the following elements:. anadjustable hinged chute for receiving and delivering the goods .to bevend'ed, a detachable coin-chute, a goods-ejecting plate connected withthe pull-bar byadetachable locking-link, a coin-operated coin-receiver,and a 'claimas new, and desire to secure by Letters spring-actuatedrack-bar for preventing the fraudulent operation of the machine, allcombined and operatin g substantially as set forth. In testimony that Iclaim the",fo regoing I have hereunto set my hand, in the presence oftwo. witnesses, this '7th day'ot Ma'y, 1890.

J. O. STEVENS. Witnesses:

JACOB I. STORER, ROBERT P. GETTY, Jr.

